WINNIPEG – Looking for their first sweep of the season, the Lethbridge Pronghorn found themselves down by three goals in the second period and despite a strong second half of the game, the 'Horns dropped a 6-4 decision to the Manitoba Bisons.

 The 'Horns fell behind 5-2 near the midpoint of the second period but attempted to claw themselves back into the contest and with 15 minutes remaining they had cut the Bison lead to 5-4 but that would be as close as they would get.
 

Brett Dudar's goal at 9:51 of the second would prove to be the winner as the Bisons hold on and earn a series split at home. Manitoba moves back to .500 with a 5-5 record, while Lethbridge drops to 3-4-3.

A wild start to the first period saw two goals being scored with the 'Horns getting onto the board first. Three minutes into the third period, Artisom Kalashnikov made a nifty toe drag in the neutral zone to create a 2-on-1, where he fed a beautiful saucer pass to Bryson Gore who finished the play. Manitoba would answer seconds later, after a juicy rebound was kicked out to the slot by Garret Hughson and Warren Callis was there to bury his second of the season.

At the 8:20 mark of the first, Nick Zajac scored his first goal as a Bison and gave them their first lead of the weekend. He collected the puck at the Lethbridge blue line and showed some great patience and fired a low, hard shot on Hughson. Zajac chased his own rebound and managed to backhand it into a yawning cage.

Two minutes later, Jordan DePape showcased his speed, driving wide on Hughson and beat him for his fifth goal of the year to give the Bisons a 3-1 lead.

With Brett Brooks off for a check to the head penalty, Valentino made the Bisons pay when he collected the puck at the side of the net and brought it to his forehand and roofed it on Spriggs.

Five minutes into the second, the Bisons restored their two goal lead off a Lee Christensen blast from the point. At the halfway mark of the second, Hughson was chased from his net after he gave up another rebound goal to Dudar.

With five minutes remaining in the second frame, the Bisons got hemmed into their zone for a long period of time, and Dalton Sward capitalized with the tired group on the ice. Sward found the puck in the slot with his back to goal, and spun around to score far side.

Lethbridge drew within one six minutes into the third after Valentino came in on the left side and made a slick toe drag and finished low glove. The 'Horns applied some heavy pressure in the third in an effort to tie the game, but Spriggs stood tall for the herd in net making some key stops.

Zajac had a great opportunity to get his second of the afternoon with five minutes remaining in the game when he hit the post after a nice feed from Liam Bilton on a 2-on-1. Shawn Bowles iced the win for the Bisons with an empty net goal with 45 seconds remaining.

Next up for the Pronghorns is a home-and-home series with the Mount Royal Cougars. The weekend set opens in Lethbridge Friday night at Nicholas Sheran Arena.